I saw something that said Cory and his father were estranged for 17 years, and that Dad only showed up when Cory hit big.

IF that's true - and I/we have no way of knowing that, then I don't blame the Mom for not having him there. Sometimes dumping your family has lasting repercussions. Sometimes you get a do over, but not every time. I'm sorry the man's feelings are hurt, but I'm sorrier he let an estrangement go on for that long... I have a feeling it's a case of "You made your bed, now you can lay in it..."

He also said he was "shocked" about Cory's heroin abuse. Heck, I knew about it and I'm not related to him. Kind of shows how non involved he was in Cory's life.

Exactly. I knew about it too and I barely watched Glee for about a season and so am not remotely a "fan". If I know about it, then it seems as though the father went out of his way to ignore any info on his own child. So I'm not feeling a lot of empathy for him.

I don't follow celebrity news, but as my DD is a huge Glee fan, I have read a few things. It doesn't sound like his dad was a presence in his life so the people who were closest to him made the choice to exclude him. And if he didn't know about the drugs, then he lived under a rock. When I saw that he died, I knew what it was..and I don't even know the guy!

This is going to sound heartless, but no one has any responsibility to inform a cut-off/estranged relative of a person's death.

Not finding out about a death until after the funeral is completed is just one of the potential consequences of being estranged and/or cut-off.

POD. It's one of the things that I fear while being a fact that I've come to terms with. I'm cut off from my dad (his choice) and I'm not expecting to learn of when my paternal grandparents die or if something happens to him, honestly.

I do think that whether or not his father is invited to or told about his funeral does depend on the relationship that they had with each other. That being said, I can understand that now that his son is gone, there is a lot of grief (afterall, now it's final. There will never be reconciliation), and attending a funeral (which is for the living I believe) brings closure for some. I can see why he thought he would go, even if I can understand why Cory's mom wouldn't have invited him.

Also, the article said "no one got back to me", which makes it sound like he did try to find out the details of the funeral.

I've never heard of this actor before and don't know anything about the situation, but even for an estranged family this seems incredibly harsh. Once the funeral is over there is no chance to redo it. He would have to have done something downright evil for me to think this was justified.

On the other hand, I believe it's ultimately the mother's decision. I'd hope she took all factors into consideration before making the choice to exclude the father.

It's also entirely possible that it simply didn't occur to anyone to contact the father. Planning a funeral is a very emotionally and physically draining process, especially if the death was unexpected.

Even under relatively normal circumstances, but especially in that sort of situation, I can't say I'd blame anyone for not thinking to contact someone who is otherwise out of the picture.

It's entirely possible this is a conversation Cory had already had w/ his mom or girlfriend. I know that those closest to me (husband, mom, brother) and I have already had a discussion about certain family members who are not to be allowed anywhere near us...even after we pass.

I agree w/ those who say Dad seems like a professional victim. If you have no way to contact your family other than throw gossip to tabloids...there's probably a reason they want nothing to do w/ you!

It's entirely possible this is a conversation Cory had already had w/ his mom or girlfriend. I know that those closest to me (husband, mom, brother) and I have already had a discussion about certain family members who are not to be allowed anywhere near us...even after we pass. And to futher that thought, I, nor my kids have phone numbers to contact the people we don't want near us anyway

I agree w/ those who say Dad seems like a professional victim. If you have no way to contact your family other than throw gossip to tabloids...there's probably a reason they want nothing to do w/ you!

Cory was in rehab a few months ago - his dad didn't know? I agree, professional victim looking for his 15 minutes of fame. (and probably a chunk of change down the road)